Order this classic dish at a restaurant, and you’re likely in for a 900-calorie meal. Opt for the frozen variety, and you won’t do much better, at around 700 calories a pop. (With both options, sodium could be double the recommended daily amount.) In other words: There are plenty of great reasons to make your own chicken pot pie!

By making simple ingredient swaps, you can enjoy your favorite comfort foods any night of the week without an ounce of guilt. All of these dishes have fewer than 500 calories per serving.

Meatloaf (above)
Food Network Kitchens created a Cheesy Meatloaf with Green Quinoa for about half the calories of traditional meatloaf by using a combo of extra-lean ground turkey and beef along with spinach and cilantro. A sprinkle of full-fat cheese, melted on top, provides just the right amount of gooey goodness.Calories per serving: 430Bonus points for: quinoa on the side!

These one-dish wonders are a perfect meal any night of the week. But loads of creamy canned soup, butter and cheese tend to sabotage most casseroles. Here’s how to make the comfort-food favorites with healthier ingredients.

As I was driving home yesterday, my car thermometer showed an outside temperature of 17 degrees F. In these frigid temperatures, comfort foods make you feel warm and cozy. But they don’t have to be over-the-top indulgent; here are 12 comfort food classics with fewer than 500 calories per serving.

Fried Chicken

Ellie’s super-simple spin on fried chicken uses crushed corn cereal flakes plus a blend of spices for a very crunchy dish. It’s a staple in my busy house with only about 10 minutes of prep time!Recipe:Oven-Fried Chicken

Lasagna
A touch of sweet Italian turkey sausage makes this pasta dish hearty, yet sensible. The cheese layer’s filled with part-skim ricotta and low fat cottage cheese along with some part-skim mozzarella, which helps keep the calories in check at 350 per serving.

This backyard classic can be tricky to make, messy to eat and tough on the waistline. We can’t do much about the mess, but can help out with everything else. Grab your napkins!

Nutrition Facts
Order up a platter of baby backs at a restaurant and you’ll be downing over 1,000 calories and a staggering 70-plus grams of fat. Portion control must be emphasized no matter what and making your own is your best bet.

Most daiquiris are cloyingly sweet and filled with booze, but make your own for a much lighter version of this classic summer cocktail.

Nutrition Facts
A 2-ounce portion of frozen daiquiri mix (no alcohol) has 120 calories and more than 5 teaspoons of added sugar. The quality of the ingredients is another sticky issue – most bottled mixers are filled with artificial colors and high fructose corn syrup. Pour in the rum and it’s another 100-plus calories per shot. There are better options….

Eggs Benedict is my all time favorite breakfast, but it can be a bit heavy. Here’s a traditional recipe with a few healthy twists.

Nutrition Facts
An order of Eggs Benedict at IHOP has 1020 calories and almost 60 grams of fat – and those aren’t even the most outrageous numbers I’ve seen. Large portions of meat and gobs of buttery sauces are mostly to blame.

Don’t get us wrong – our intention is not to thwart the fundraising efforts of deserving girl scouts. But let’s face it, all packaged cookies need preservatives to stay fresh. We’re offering a recipe with nothing but real ingredients. Besides, you can only get your hands on these cookies once a year so it’s nice to have a recipe on hand when girls scouts are on hiatus.
“Thank U Berry Munch” cookies debuted in 2010. Made with sweet-tart cranberries and white chocolate, our version has all the flavor and none of the preservatives. Some online reviews noted that this cookies was overly sweet so we took that into account when creating this tasty version.

Soaked in sugar, eggs and half-and-half, bread pudding is decadent to say the least. Good news – it’s possible to cozy up with a tasty version of this comfort food for less calories.

Nutrition Facts
Classic bread pudding recipes can have over 600 calories and 30 grams of fat per serving. If you’re using doughnuts and buttery croissants instead of bread, you’d be lucky to keep things under 1000 calories.

The basic recipe is simple, combine bread with custard and bake. To lighten things up, use smarter ingredients at each stage of the recipe and keep portions to about ½ cup per person.